What the series code on a Lottery Sambad ticket means, why the first prize needs it, why the consolation prize does not, and where it stops mattering.
Published 6 November 2026 · the numbers in this guide are read live from our archive.
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The short answer. The series code is the short marker printed before the
five-digit number on a Lottery Sambad ticket, usually two digits and a letter. Because the
same five-digit numbers are printed across several series in one draw, the first prize names
both a series and a number. The consolation prize covers that number in every other series,
and the lower tiers ignore the series completely.
Most confusion about these draws comes down to one small block of characters. People read it
as part of their number, or ignore it entirely, and then cannot work out why a sheet seems to
say they won and lost at the same time. The series code is doing something specific, and once
you see what, the first prize and the consolation prize stop looking like a contradiction.
What is the series number on a Lottery Sambad ticket?
It is the code that comes before your five digits. On a sheet, the winning ticket is printed as
that code followed by the number, which is how a first prize reads as a single unambiguous
ticket rather than a number that several people could be holding.
Think of the five digits as the number and the series as the edition it was printed in. The
number on its own is not unique in a draw; the pair is. That is why our archive keeps the two
apart, storing the series code separately from the five digits, and prints them together on
every result page.
The newest 1 PM sheet in our archive. The first-prize line is the only place a series code appears, printed immediately before the five-digit number.
Because without it the first prize would not identify one ticket. If the sheet printed five
digits alone, every holder of those digits in every series printed for that draw would have an
equal claim on the top prize, and the draw would have no single winner to announce.
So the sheet does the narrower thing: it names one series and one number. Everybody else
holding those digits is dealt with separately, in the tier directly beneath it. The structure
is deliberate rather than an accident of printing, and it is the only tier on the whole sheet
where the series is part of the comparison.
What the sheet states
One series code, one five-digit number, once per draw. There is never more than one
first-prize ticket on a genuine sheet, which is one of the checks worth running on any copy
somebody sends you.
What it does not state
How many series were printed for that draw. The sheet does not say, so neither do we. Anyone
quoting a figure for it is going beyond the document.
What your ticket shows
Your own series code, in front of your own five digits, in the same order as the sheet prints
them. Reading your ticket in that order is what makes the comparison quick.
Why does the consolation prize ignore the series?
The consolation prize is built for the people the first prize leaves out. It applies to the
first prize number sold in other series, which means one line on the sheet settles two tiers at
once: the exact ticket takes the first prize, and the same digits elsewhere take the
consolation.
This is the single most misread thing about the series code. A matching number with a different
series is not a near miss and not a printing error. It is a winning position in a lower tier,
and the sheet says so a line or two below the first prize. The whole ladder of tiers is set out
in our guide to the
Lottery Sambad prize structure.
An earlier 1 PM sheet. A different series code and a different number, in the same position on the page, because nothing carries over from one draw to the next.
Where does the series stop mattering?
Where a series code counts, and where it is irrelevant
On the sheet
Series matters?
Why
First prize
Yes
It names one exact ticket, series and number together
Consolation
Only in that yours must differ
It covers the first prize number in the other series
Second prize
No
Ten whole five-digit numbers are printed with no series codes
Third to fifth prizes
No
Only the last four digits of your number are compared
Draw number in the header
Not a series at all
It identifies the draw, not any ticket in it
The practical reading of that table: the series code matters at the very top of the sheet and
nowhere else. From the second prize downwards you can cover it with your thumb. People who
check tickets quickly tend to do exactly that, working the endings first and only going back to
the series if their five digits turn out to match the first prize.
What do people get wrong about the series?
Three things, in order of how often they come up. The first is treating the series code as part
of the number, which turns a five-digit comparison into a mess and makes the lower tiers
impossible to check. The second is confusing the series code with the draw number in the
header; they sit in different places and identify different things, one your ticket and one the
draw. The third is deciding that a different series means a fake ticket, when it is the ordinary
state of almost every ticket in a draw.
A fourth, rarer one is worth a line: reading the series code off a screenshot. The codes are
short and low-contrast on a compressed image, and a letter can turn into a digit easily. If a
series code is going to decide anything, read it from the sheet at full size. Our guide to
reading a result sheet covers the
rest of the document, and the
ticket checking routine puts the tiers in
order.
The newest 8 PM sheet. Each slot prints its own first-prize series and number, so the same code means nothing across two draws.The newest 6 PM sheet, from the Sikkim State Lottery. Different operator in the header, the same convention for the series code below it.
Where can I read the series for my own draw?
The three slots, with the latest first-prize ticket we hold for each
The table above prints each slot’s most recent first-prize ticket in the same form as the
sheet: series code, then number. For a specific date, open the
daily result page or the slot page you follow —
1 PM,
6 PM or
8 PM — and open the sheet itself. Tapping it
gives you the full-size document, which is the only version worth reading a series code from.
Read it off the official sheet. We keep an independent archive of published results. We
do not sell tickets, we are not the Nagaland or Sikkim state lotteries or a distributor for
either, and we cannot verify a ticket or pay a prize. Dear Lottery and Lottery Sambad tickets
are sold only where state law allows state lotteries, and the rules depend on where you are, so
put anything about a claim to the official operator.
Lottery Sambad results
Every sheet is archived here as an image, with the first-prize ticket beside it.
It is the short code printed in front of the five-digit number, usually two digits and a letter. The same five-digit numbers are printed in several series for one draw, so the series code is what makes your particular ticket unique.
Yes. The first-prize line on the sheet names one series code and one five-digit number, and only that combination takes the first prize. A ticket with the same digits in another series falls into the consolation tier instead.
You are in the consolation tier, not the first-prize tier. The consolation prize exists for exactly this case: the first prize number sold in other series. Read the consolation line on the official sheet for your draw and slot.
No. The second prize compares the whole five-digit number with no series code attached, and the third, fourth and fifth prizes compare only the last four digits. In those tiers your series code makes no difference at all.
No. The series code belongs to your ticket and sits in front of your five digits. The draw number is printed in the sheet header and identifies the draw itself, alongside the draw name and the date.
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